Machine gun ammunition bandoleer



Dec. 7, -1948. J. H. BECKMAN MACHINE GUN AMMUNITION BANDOLEER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 3, 1946 Juhu H Eleckman Dec. 7, 1948. BECKMAN 2,455,352

MACHINE GUN AMMUNITION BANDOLEER Filed June 5, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 .Inl-m Hjeckman Dec. 7, 194s.

Filed Juge s, 194s J. H. BECKMAN 2,455,352

MACHINE GUN AMMUNITION BANDOLEER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Tnh H Elekman Patented Dec. 7, 1948 UNHTED STATES FATENT OFFlCh 2 Claims.

The invention described. herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

rIhis invention relates to a bandoleer for carrying a belt of machine gun ammunition.

An object of my invention is to provide means to enable a foot soldier to carry a large quantity of belted machine gun ammunition while leaving both hands of the bearer free, and which can be carried long distances with minimum. fatigue while having the ammunition readily available in emergencies, and which is easy to move when changing gun positions.

Another object is to provide a device of the above character which protects the ammunition and its belt from dirt and water.

Still another object is to provide a bandoleer for machine gun ammunition for use by parachute and airborne troops.

More specically my invention comprises a flexible tube of generally rectangular cross-section permanently closed at one end and dimensioned to accommodate a length of machine gun ammunition in a belt7 folded back on itself several times, with one end of the belt accessible from the open end of the bandoleer, which is provided with locking means and means to hook said open end on to a bracket of a machine gun so that when the end of the belt is inserted into the machine gun in the usual fashion `for firing, the ammunition belt will feed freely out of the bandoleer. In carrying the bandoleer the locking means is closed to retain the ammunition in the bandoleer, and the two ends of the bandoleer are fastened together by means of a suitable fastener so that the bandoleer may be carried as a loop across the shoulder.

The following description shows my invention applied to a machine gun belt of the iieXible fabric type. It will be understood that my bandoleer may be equally well designed to take any other type of belt ammunition such as the well-known metallic belt.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a pictorial view showing the manner in which the bandoleer is carried.

Figure 2 is a perspective View showing the open end of the bandoleer hooked on to a machine gun tripod bracket, with the ammunition belt feeding into the machine gun out of said open end.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the open end of the bandoleer hooked on to a machine gun tripod bracket.

amended April 30, 1928; 370 O. G. 757) Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 showing the bandoleer closed.

Figure 5 is anA exploded view of the components of the metal parts comprising the closing means for the bandoleer.

Figure 6 is a sectional view transverse of the open bandoleer, showing the preferred manner of folding the material.

My bandoleer comprises a eXible tube I, made of canvas or any other suitable material, preferably waterproof, and permanently closed at one end 2, to which a snap fastener 3 is attached for forming the bandoleer into a loop to facilitate carrying of same over the shoulder, as shown in Figure l. The material of the bandoleer is preferably sewed or otherwise formed so that it tends to open into a tube of rectangular cross-section, as shown in Figure 6, in order to accommodate the several layers of a folded belt of machine gun ammunition, as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

The mouth of the bandoleer may be closed by means of a metal closure device, the component parts of which are best seen in Figure 5. Foundation plate 4 and guide plate 5 are riveted together (or otherwise fastened) with the material of the bottom side 9 of the tube between them, as shown in Figure 3. Hook plate 6 and latch plate 'l are similarly riveted together with the material of the top side IU, of the tube between them. Latching member 8 is secured in the slots l2 of plate 'I by means of pin i3, which is iixed to member 8. When the top and bottom sides of the bandoleer mouth are brought together, the protruding ends of pin I3 can be hooked over bayonet slots I4 of plate I4 with the handle of latch 8 up, and when the handle is pressed home, as shown in Figure 4, the mouth of the bandoleer will be firmly closed. If the bandoleer is make of waterproof material, a rubber gasket may be employed to additionally seal the mouth.

Guide plate 5 is provided with guide I5 forming a retaining loop, for holding the bottom layer of the folded ammunition belt I6, so that this layer is retained in place until the rest of the belt has been fed out. Hook plate 6 carries hook I8, over which the apertured tang 20 of a standard machine gun belt m-ay be hooked, to prevent same from slipping down into the bandoleer, and to retain same in accessible position until needed. Foundation plate Il is provided with a hook 22 having an aperture 2li therein to receive the snap fastener 3. Hook 22 is dirnensioned to be held on the ammunition bracket of the tripod of a heavy machine gun, as shown in Figure 2, so that the bandoleer will be properly positioned with respect to the machine gun to feed the ammunition belt smoothly into the gun.

I claim:

1. A bandoleer comprising a exible tube having a closed end and an open end, closure means for said open end comprising a first plate having a external hang'i and a pair of side brackets provided with locking notches in their upper edges, a second plate including a spaced transverse belt guide extending from the lower por-` tion thereof, a third plate having a cut away portion and a rod projecting into 'sai'd portion, a fourth plate including a pair of side wingshaving elongated grooves in their vupper portions, means clamping one face of said tube between said rst and second plates, means clamping the opposite face of said tube between said third and fourth plates, and a locking ii'n including a handle portion, a gripping portion, and 'a pail1 of laterally projecting locating lugs slidable in said grooves and engageable in one position with said notches for releasably locking said clamped pairs of plates together.

2. A bandoleer for a machine gun ammunition belt comprising a exible tube permanently closed at one end and dimensioned to accommodate a folded belt of machine gun ammunition, manually operable means for closing the open end of the tube to retain an ammunition belt therein, a retaining loop in said tube adjacent the open end thereof and dimensioned to accommodate one thickness of a belt of machine gun ammunition to loosely retain one fold of said belt while permitting insertion of other folds of said belt into said tube, and a hook member adjacent the said open end for retaining the front end of said ammunition belt readily accessible when said bandoleer is opened.

JOHN H. BECKMAN.

REFERENCES CITED 'The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2Q 1,110,694 Jennings Sept. 15, 1914 1,308,665 Douglas July l, 1919 2,110,160 Larsson Mar. 8, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS g5 Number Country Date 14,910 Great Britain Nov. 17, 1886 

